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228 her policy in acquiring foreign reserva- tions of petroleum, indicated beyond question the great advantage of fuel oil for naval operations and ocean transportation, and which factors have in addition been the source of much activity in the United States. On large passenger vessels fitted for oil fuel it has been noted that an enormous saving in operating costs has been effected on account of lessened wear and tear on such items as carpets, draperies and cabin equipment. The great problem confronting steam- ship operators today is the question as to whether the world’s supply of petroleum is sufficient to sustain auto- motive transportation- on land, indus- trial power plants, lubrication require- ments of industry, and whether the supply will support the great change in the conversion of ocean shipping to an oil-burning basis. Were the 55,000,000 tons of. world’s ocean shipping converted to an _ oil- burning basis, it would require an an- nual consumption of over 500,000,000 barrels of oil, which represents nearby the total quantity of petroleum pro- duced in the world today. While this consumption could, of course, be some- what reduced adoption of diesel engines, it would, nevertheless, be of huge proportions. Utilization of oil by ocean shipping, however, is today governed largely by the matter of price; and upon the production of the world’s most exten- sive deposits being exhausted it is possible that some reduction may be forced in the amount of fuel oil used for maritime purposes. This possibility seems to have been lost sight of un- der the preserit competitive conditions existing and on account of the great advantages offered by the use of fuel oil at the present price level. Regard- less of the future of fuel oil, the fact remains that it is now definitely in- volved in competitive shipping efforts and its use is fully expected to grow for a considerable period at least. Powdered coal is still in an experi- -mental stage and it is questionable if its use on board vessels could be at- tended with any degree of success. It is expected, however, that the develop- ment of automatic stokers for use on shipboard will aid materially in the continued use of coal for marine pur- poses. The consumers of petroleum oil are now facing a condition of decreasing production and increasing demand, which condition points inevitably to the necessity of developing other sources of fuel for power. Hydroelectric plants can aid materi- by a more universal MARINE REVIEW ally in’ the conservation of fuel oil in the power they produce, but indus- trial plants, railroads, and similar in- stitutions will eventually have to find other sources of power than that de- veloped by fucl oil, in order to supply the increasing demand for marine pur- poses, although of the substitute fuels, undoubtedly occupy the coal. will chief position. Even at this stage it is significant that coal is now being brought .from Australian ports in American vessels using oil as fuel; and large steam- ship companies having many vessels usually confine that portion of their fleet operating in Pacific coast waters to those vessels fitted for oil burning. Approximately 60 per cent of the CAPT. JOHN BRADSHAW Commander of the new 27,200-ton Red Star liner BELGENLAND, is an American citizen, resi- dent of New York, who has a long and dis- tinguished record in sea service. He was for 10 years in command of the Red Star liner LapLanp before his recent promotion. crude oil produced in California is re- fined, at least in part, before being utilized. The increased demand for gasoline and lubricants and the rapid strides in refinery efficiency are re- sulting in the refining of a constantly increasing proportion of the oil with a resultant smaller quantity available for fuel purposes. Practically 50 per cent covers oil exports to the Orient from California ports, though these exports are confined mostly to fuel oil to Hawaii, Central America and South America, gasoline and distillate to Australia, and kerosene to the Far East. The demand for refined oil products is rapidly increasing and will be ac- celerated by the potential oil shortage in other fields of the United States and by the necessity of using California - refineries. June, T9023 oils to offset this shortage. To meet this increasing demand, “California oil must be used more efficiently and spar- ingly. California now produces between one-quarter and one-fifth of the world’s supply of petroleum oils and one-third of the United States’ supply. Statistics show that to Jan. 1, 1921, the United States had produced 5.4 billion bar- rels; and subtracting this quantity from the original supply of 11.3 billion bar- rels as estimated bythe United States geological survey in 1918, would leave as a working reserve only 5.9 billion barrels, with the annual requirements running over half a _ billion barrels. Important strides have been made in refinery efficiency, also in number of The refining capacity of the entire country increased 18 per cent during 1919 and 23 per cent in 1920. This increase in ‘refinery capacity to- gether with greater efficiency will cer- tainly have the effect of reducing the quantity of oil available for fuel. It is a fact, however, that petroleum can not be expected radically to dis- place coal in industry and transporta- tion, since a crude petroleum produc- tion of about 3,000,000,000 barrels per year would be necessary to drive coal _ from its present position. For the future, fuel oil will repre- sent a reducing percentage of the crude petroleum produced, for the more * specialized uses, such as automotive power, lubricants and chemical by- products are coming into more im- portance and must be considered in preference to the demand for industrial fuel. However, fuel in liquid or gaseous forms is of such importance and has so many advantages in convenience and efficiency that it may reasonably be ex- pected to continue to supplant solid fuels, which solid fuels must take sec- ond place as regard certain industrial uses and marine propulsion. The output of crude petroleum in the United States is conceded to have virtually reached its maximum, and as the proved fields of Mexico are showing a rapid decline, a marked falling off in imports from that source may be expected. Cheap supplies of petroleum will soon be a thing of the past; and the answer to the domestic petroleum problem does not lie in im- portations from foreign sources. Efficiency in production and utiliza- tion and supplemental sources of sup- ply at home must share with foreign supplies the responsibility of sustain- ing those activities exclusively de- pendent upon liquid fuel, and of which none is more important than the ques- tion of fuel for marine purposes.